Meadowland

As we read James 1:27 our minds tend to focus on foreign missions. What if I told you that God has uniquely positioned Currey Creek Church as the closest body of Christ geographically to a group of people that have been marginalized in society? We don’t have to travel overseas to have opportunities to minister to people in crisis. In fact, opportunity is knocking right at our door - only one mile away from our campus! What if we could tell these people that God sees them and cares for them, that he sent his only Son to die on the cross to take away their sins? We can plant seeds of faith, hope, and love to a group of individuals that are in desperate need of hearing this truth.

For years, families from our congregation have given their Sunday afternoons once a month to share a meal, play basketball, make crafts, strategize over board games, and share the gospel with the at-risk youth from Meadowland campus. Many organizations support Meadowland throughout holidays and the summer, but Currey Creek has a unique opportunity to build relationships and share the gospel during the school year.

Donnie and Kelly Hohne, Chip and Nancy Beebe, Julio and Tracy Calderon, Bobby and Ashley Langenbahn, and Bryan and Diana Kaiser, along with their children, are all families from our church who have felt the call to minister to these kids. One of the greatest blessings these couples have experienced has been serving alongside their own children in this capacity. Because some of the at-risk youth have trouble responding well to adults for various reasons, they have been more likely to warm up to their peers. Payton and Paige Schuette, juniors at Boerne High who attend our church, have created friendships with some of these high school girls at Meadowlands, participated in devotionals with them, and encouraged them in their walk with the Lord.

Another way God has opened the door to ministering at Meadowland has been during their staff appreciation lunches, organized by Anna Floyd, Michelle Schuette and Michele Gray. With over 100 staff members, who work hard to keep the Meadowland organization running, the idea was proposed to create a staff appreciation “fiesta” themed luncheon a couple times a year. Women from our Wednesday morning Bible study signed up to bring food items or write notes of appreciation to the staff. As they participated in this luncheon, tears welled up in the staff’s eyes to know that our community loves and appreciates them, and most importantly that Christ loves and appreciates them as well. Some of the staff also started to attend Currey Creek from this outreach.

Looking forward, the opportunities for Currey Creek to support and encourage the staff and attendees of Meadowland are endless. You or your small group could sign up to help on a Sunday afternoon entertain the kids, put together welcome packets for new attendees, tutor a kid with their schoolwork, help with maintenance issues around campus, and much more. May we be the hands and feet of Christ for those in our community who need to hear of God’s love in the midst of their crisis.

Currey Creek Church
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” -James 1:27

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John's April Article:

As war loomed over England plans were being made to prepare the nation. Sir John Anderson was charged with studying how the country would respond to a prolonged, destructive, aerial bombardment. An evacuation plan known as Operation Pied Piper was put into place to relocate schoolchildren, mothers with infants, and the elderly to safer communities, typically rural. On August 31, 1939 an evacuation order was given. The next day children began assembling at various points throughout the country. It was a logistical nightmare requiring thousands of volunteers to implement the plan. London alone had over 1,500 assembly points with trains running out of the capital’s main stations every nine minutes for nine hours! The process involved teachers, local officials, railway stations and 17,000 members of the Women’s Voluntary Service (WVS) who provided practical assistance, refreshments, and comfort for many distraught and scared children. Over the next three days of official evacuation an astonishing 1.5 million people were moved. In England alone 673,000 unaccompanied schoolchildren, separated from their parents and, sometimes, siblings, were accompanied on their journey by an army of volunteers. The challenge was not limited to simply removing the children from high risk areas. They also needed a place to stay. The plan was to place the children in private homes rather than large camps. Being a desperate situation, the government made it compulsory for homes to take in these displaced children and even compensated the homes. Even today we recognize the radical nature of such a plan. But when we consider that children were in imminent danger, we can at least begin to understand the desire to keep children safe. This month we highlight the work of those involved at Meadowland. The children placed in the care of Meadowland are at-risk kids, not from bombings, but from a home situation that is not good, and from problems that the kids themselves have created. I’m not going to sugar-coat the situation. It is hard, and at times frustrating work. But just as England saw the need to do what it could to ensure the safety of its children, those at Meadowland and Currey Creek are trying to make the best of a bad situation. How? By sharing the love of Jesus on a consistent basis. Would you consider becoming an active participant in this ministry? You can consistently pray for the children, the staff, and our volunteers. You can come alongside our team to encourage and support them as they serve. And of course, you can involve your family in showing these kids that they are loved and valued. Thank you Currey Creek family for sacrificial love, sacrificial giving, and doing the work of the ministry in our community.

-John Free